The aim of this research is to construct a theoretical model of the ontogeny of acquisition of symbolic conceptualizations of Peruvian Quechua speaking children between the ages of 5 through 12. Groups of 3-5 children were video-taped as they discussed, planned and dramatized ritual behavior of their choosing. The children were given dolls, small furniture and ritual paraphernalia to play with. Twenty-six video tapes have been filmed and are currently being transcribed and analyzed. The analyses focus upon: 1) the children's interaction as they discuss and plan their enactments, comparing age and sex groups, with 2) the actual manipulations of the dolls - what they have the dolls say and do, furthermore, 3) investigations of semantic frames and intentions on both of these levels will be undertaken, and finally, 4) we are comparing case grammars of the different age groups to construct a case model of child speech to aid in the interpretation of the semantics of the children's interaction as well as the behavior they attribute to the dolls. The major hypothesis is that the ontogeny of acquisition of symbols mirrors the acquisition of process of language.